Delightful moment after signing the MOU between SAC and ICRISAT, 23rd August 2016, India

Applications are invited from the potential candidates of SAARC Member Countries to pursue Ph.D. study in the thematic area. Candidates should submit applications to Director, SAARC Agriculture Centre (SAC), Dhaka, Bangladesh on or before 30th April 2017. Application Form

The SAARC Agriculture Centre (SAC), Dhaka, Bangladesh commemorated the 32nd SAARC Charter Day along with the International Year of Pulses – 2016 on 08 December 2016 at 02:00 pm at the Auditorium of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC), Farmgate, Dhaka.

H. E. Mr. Arjun B. Thapa, Secretary-General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) paid courtesy visit to SAARC Agriculture Centre (SAC) on Friday, 8 April 2016 during his visit to Bangladesh in connection with the Third Meeting of SAARC Ministers' of Agriculture held during 3-7 April 2016.

In an exchanged views meeting with SAC personnel’s, H. E. the Secretary-General expressed his deep appreciation to the SAC for its activities, progress and success and playing a vital role in contributing towards the objectives of SAARC since its establishment in 1988. He mentioned that for first-class works, need good planning, best networking and better management. In the meeting he also discussed on the limited resources and staffs with low salary structure for SAC and calls for it’s up gradation.

H. E. Mr. Arjun B. Thapa, expressed SAARC’s unflinching commitment to provide all possible support to turn the SAARC Agriculture Centre (SAC) into a ‘centre of excellence’ so that it can contribute to making important scientific breakthrough in agriculture and rural development. He also mentions that SAC is one of the best centre of SAARC and you are the real SAARC.

Before that Director of SAC Dr. S.M. Bokhtiar offer warm welcome reception to the H.E. Secretary-General of SAARC. He also presented SAC’s present and future activities and urge for all support.

Director of SAC Dr. S.M. Bokhtiar welcomed H.E. at SAC. Later, a view exchange meeting was organized at the conference room of SAC where SPS, SPO & staffs were present. Dr. Bokhtiar presented SAC’s present and future activities at a glance. Nepal's Agriculture minister expressed his satisfaction on SAC activities, progress and success. Minister said, exchange of germplasms; regional adaptive trials for vegetables, pulse and oil seed are very good initiatives. and asks for more action to development of the region

The SAARC region is registering satisfactory economic growth. Nevertheless, hunger and malnutrition particularly among women and children are widespread. This is often referred to as “SAARC enigma”. Agriculture is one of the most important professions in the SAARC countries and rice is the most important food crop. The prevailing hunger in the region is caused by three factors, viz, inadequate consumption of food, protein deficiency and hidden hunger caused by the deficiency of micronutrients like iron, iodine, zinc, vitamin A, vitamin B12 etc. Also, to achieve the zero hunger challenge we will have to give concurrent attention to all the three forms of hunger, particularly under-nutrition leading to calorie deprivation. The zero hunger challenge of the UN Secretary General has five major components, viz, 100% access to adequate food all year round, zero stunted children less than 2 years of age, all food systems are sustainable, 100% increase in smallholder productivity and income and zero loss or waste of food. An economical and effective method of achieving zero hunger is applying agricultural remedies to the prevailing nutritional maladies. For this purpose, SAARC countries can reorient the existing farming systems by including the dimension of nutrition. Such Farming System for Nutrition (FSN) should be supported by Genetic Garden of Biofortified Plants and Community Hunger Fighters, well versed in the causes as well as cures for the high malnutrition burden.

Nutrition is fundamental to provide every human being an opportunity for a productive and healthy life. The SAARC region should show the way by integrating agriculture with nutrition and health.